Any desktop-mode tips for a new Steam Deck owner?

I think it would be much less hassle for you to install another OS instead of SteamOS. Like Bazzite. You should be able to configure that to your liking more easily.

1. Yes, kinda. This apparently breaks your ability to easily switch back to game mode, but you can still get back there by running the second command below and rebooting.

to boot into desktop mode by default

steamos-session-select plasma-persistent

to boot into gaming mode by default (and to fix inability to go back to gaming mode from desktop)

steamos-session-select gamescope

1. It will last until each update. Updates happen via an A/B partition switch, so the other partition gets updated, then that one becomes the default for booting (both still technically boot, but the original image will be behind).

2. If you mean accidental changes by you, then it would be steamos-readonly enable. Note that changes happen via a persistent OverlayFS. Re-enabling might remove that overlay and your changes. Test with something easy to see if it persists. Note point 2 about permanence.

3. Don't bother messing with the system files if possible. Try to use an AppImage or Flatpak instead, as they exist in userspace and will persist over updates. The issue is that it's the core system files that are written to a new image each update, not your home directory. Your home directory and settings will persist.

If you want something modifiable but still atomic, Bazzite is a good option. You can apply rpm packages via layering, and you can install packages from other package managers via distrobox. You'll still have the safety of images as restore points. If you want a more traditional Linux experience, though, look into something like CachyOS.

When docked, the Deck works great as a desktop PC. But not as a laptop. It's too much to carry (lapdock + deck). The lapdock would be more suitable for your phone.

Also, I wouldn't change the Deck's OS, the only viable alternative is going with Bazzite. Anything else would be either a risk or a downgraded experience.

To save you time, Nested Desktop can effectively get you into Desktop stuff much more quickly than the standard reboot-to-Desktop sequence.

That is an older post, but all of this still works exactly the same way now as it did then.

For 2, there are ways to install packages without messing with the read only file system. Easiest ways are using nix packages or using distrobox to install non-flatpak software.

So for the linked aur PWA package you provided, you could create an arch linux distrobox, enter it, install yay (or another aur helper), install firefox and your pwa package, and then use the distrobox-export --app <package> command to make the installed software directly runnable from the desktop.

Can you explain this lapdock setup you're talking about?

1. In practice, how well does sudo steamos-readonly disable and installing things from pacman work out for you? In particular, I want to use PWAs For Firefox and it requires this package in order to work. Do packages actually get wiped with SteamOS updates, as the FAQ warns?

As far as I know, a new update of SteamOS will revert these changes back. However Steam has builtin support for Nix package system, where you don't need to disable readonly filesystem and changes to this directory / package system stays intact even after an update. Two articles explaining how to do this at https://sadatdaniel.dev/2023/11/install-nix-package-manager-on-your-steam-deck/ (2023) and https://chrastecky.dev/gaming/persistent-packages-on-steam-deck-using-nix (2025). Check if a certain package is available under https://search.nixos.org/packages . Now, I never did that, as I never had a need for. I can't say if this helps you with the specific package, but it might be useful for you to look into this.

I haven’t looked into 1 but from my experience yes, 2 does wipe your changes with every OS update. Coming from another arch-based system it was my preference too but I learned the hard way. Yes it’s annoying but for an immutable distro like SteamOS it’s simpler to install via flatpak.

If you’re using desktop mode in handheld it does take a minute for the trackpads to work because it uses steaminput, and the Steam client needs to start separately in desktop mode. Touch works immediately.

Make sure to put your go-to file paths in Places (I think that’s what it’s called) because navigating Dolphin in handheld can also be mildly annoying.

If you’re using a customizer like DeckyLoader holding off on updates for a week or so until there’s confirmation of stability and compatibility is advisable, but that’s more for handheld mode.

As long as you're using and plugging in your steamdeck reasonably often(every couple of days) the suspend mode is fantastic and there's little reason to ever do a full shutdown or reboot in my experience. Boot into desktop mode the first time, and then just use the suspend mode to stay there, switching to gaming mode only when you want to play games. It also doesn't take very long to switch from gaming mode to desktop mode or vice versa, I find the main time killer is the initial boot up into gaming mode the first time after shutdown.
Or you can just load games out of desktop mode, a recent update fixed a lot of the issues I had with the steam overlay not working in desktop mode and denying access to the powerful steaminput configuration options. That all works flawlessly now in desktop mode as well. I haven't actually switched back to gaming mode for some time, since I use desktop mode to install games anyway and test the installation, it's easier just to stay in desktop mode now.

I am speaking from Bazzite experience so it might be slightly different, but I wouldn't do #2. What I would do is install distrobox (pre installed on Bazzite, with boxbuddy for gui), create an Arch distrobox, and use that to access AUR.

If you want to install a package, you layer it using rpm-ostree. Don't fuck with the immutability imo

You'll want a keyboard if you want to navigate TempleOS.